There is no question that, along with population increases around the world, global demand for fresh water will rise exponentially. It is often said that many border disputes and future wars will be fought, not for oil, rather for a clean and reliable water supply. Factor in population increases, aging infrastructure, increased demand from agricultural applications and contamination issues and you are looking at a potential opportunity and windfall for water related companies to take advantage.
There are many companies in the water resources space with several of them paying long time and increasing dividends. The following companies featured will focus on three distinct segments of the water resources sector including, water treatment, water technology and irrigation: Veolia Environnement S.A. (VE), Ecolab Inc. (ECL), Pentair plc (PNR), Badger Meter Inc. (BMI), Roper Industries Inc. (ROP), Lindsay Corporation (LNN), Valmont Industries, Inc. (VMI) and Toro Co. (TTC).